Across the Fence
by Natureboy3
Summary: REPOSTED. Jayfeather is captured and taken to Auschwitz during World War 2. Can he survive the terror of the Death Camp? JayfeatherxHazeltail


**A.N.: I posted this, deleted it, then decided to post it again. No offence to anyone is intended. I really don't like flames. I can't stop you though. If you flame, you will be blocked. **

Jayfeather glared at the metal sign that hung above the gate. Work is Liberty. He continued marching as a SS guard prodded him in the back with a revolver.

"Keep moving! Schnell! Schnell! Schnell!"

The tom reflected on the events that had brought him here. He had been a gypsy all his life, moving around with his family from place to place. When all the anti-Jewish propaganda, he began to grow uneasy. He had left his family as a young man before the war, intending on settling down somewhere. When the Nazis began grabbing almost everyone, Jewish or not, Jayfeather had realized it was time to leave. He had gone into hiding, with the intent of making his way to Holland. He was almost there when someone had betrayed him to the Gestapo. After being imprisoned for a few weeks, he had been loaded on a van with many other prisoners and taken here; Auschwitz-Birkenau.

_If I ever get my paws on the rat that sold me out, I'll . . . _Jayfeather's thoughts were interrupted as he was roughly shoved in line behind a bunch of other prisoners. Peering over them, he saw a single SS cat directing them individually to go right or left. It seemed like an eternity, but it was finally his turn.

"Age?" The guard asked. He was a black and white tom with dark eyes.

"Twenty-five"

"Occupation?"

Jayfeather hesitated. What should he tell this cat?

"...farmer."

The baton in the guard's paw moved to the right. Jayfeather followed a small stream of others into a small building. Another guard came in and began beating the nearest cats with a truncheon.

"Get undressed! Leave your valuables! Schnell!"

Jayfeather quickly undressed, leaving his clothes in a pile. The guard began waving his club threateningly.

"Outside! Get your prisoner's clothing! Schnell!"

Jayfeather ran outside, where several cats dressed in clothes covered in black and white stripes threw similar clothing to him as he passed. Stopping to catch his breath, he pulled on the shirt, pants, and cap he had been given. He then put on the wooden clogs before standing back up to get his bearings. He followed the other prisoners over to a small table where several veteran prisoners sat. Coming up to one of them, they tattooed a number on his arm.

D-5621

_Is that all I shall be known as from now on? A number? _Shaking his head tiredly, he moved with the others into a large barrack. After lying down on a hard wooden bunk, Jayfeather closed his tired eyes and began to go to sleep. He didn't care that it was only about 7:00pm. He just wanted to rest.

"Hey! You! Get up!"

Jayfeather opened his eyes to see a wicked looking tom with golden fur and gray eyes glaring at him. The cat was wearing clothing like Jayfeather. Sitting up, he rubbed a paw across his tired eyes.

"What do you want?"

The tom clocked him between the ears with a club.

"I'm the Kapo for this block! What I say goes! And I say this block has work to do! Get moving! Schnell!" Looking around, Jayfeather saw that most of the other prisoners had already left. They were outside along the barbed wire fence shoveling gravel. Scrambling to his paws, he moved as quickly as he could, though not quick enough to avoid a blow across the back from the Kapo.

"Move faster! Schnell!"

Jayfeather let out a sigh as he leaned against a pile of gravel. He had managed to get away from the main group and was resting behind a pile of rock near the fence. Jayfeather was exhausted. The guards had kept them working throughout the night, and still showed no signs of letting up. Judging from the position of the moon, he guessed it was about midnight. Absent-mindedly picking up a rock, he flung it at the barbed wire fence.

ZAP!

Jayfeather jumped slightly with alarm as a small shower of sparks came from the wire. Forcing his fur to lie flat, he took a deep breath.

_Note to self: Touching barbed wire, not a good idea._

"Hello."

Jayfeather looked up to see a she-cat sitting on the opposite side of the fence. She was very pretty, with white and gray fur and sparkling eyes. She wore a plain dress with black and white stripes covering it. Jayfeather realized he was sitting near the border for the she-cat's camp. As the she-cat sat down near the fence, Jayfeather stuck his paw through a gap in the wire in an attempt to be friendly. Shaking his paw, the newcomer sat down near the fence. After introducing himself, Jayfeather listened as the female feline told her story. Her name was Hazeltail and she was the same age as Jayfeather. Her number was A-2743. She had been captured and brought to Auschwitz several weeks previously. She had a light voice and was very easy to talk to. Jayfeather talked and watched her for a while, before speaking something on his mind.

"You're really skinny. Do you eat enough?"

Hazeltail shook her head.

"No, they don't feed us much. I've . . . "

Suddenly a bell rang. The she-cat looked afraid.

"You must go now. That's the signal to return to your block." She turned to leave.

"Wait!" Jayfeather said, getting as close to the barbed wire as he dared. "Will I see you again?"

Hazeltail gave Jayfeather a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry. You'll see me again. Now go!"

Jayfeather turned and ran into the darkness. Stumbling back into his block with the last of the prisoners, he sat down on his wooden bunk. He didn't feel tired though, and his mind was spinning. He barely noticed as the Kapo shoved a piece of bread into his paws.

"Here! You might want to eat this!"

Jayfeather barely heard him. As the Kapo moved on, he stuffed half of the bread into his pocket. His mind was formulating a plan.

"No, Jayfeather, I couldn't! You take it!"

It had been a day since his first meeting with Hazeltail. He had snuck away at sunset again and was sitting behind the rock pile. The tom had taken his uneaten portion of bread and pushed it toward Hazeltail through the fence. Hazeltail refused to eat it, but Jayfeather was firm.

"You need to eat! You're almost skin and bones! I don't need it. I'm not even hungry."

That wasn't true. Jayfeather was very hungry. But he wanted Hazeltail to have the bread. Finally, she accepted. Quickly swallowing the food, she looked up as the bell rang. Poking her nose through the gap in the wire, she gently tough noses with Jayfeather. Jayfeather let out a happy sigh and closed his eyes as her sweet scent drifted over him. He wanted to stay that way forever, although it was only a few heartbeats. Murmuring a goodbye, the two cats moved away back to their blocks.

"Wake up! Move! Schnell!" Jayfeather opened his eyes to see the Kapo shoving prisoners out of their bunks and onto the floor. Still half-asleep, the tom stumbled out the door of the block. It was a cold, overcast day. SS guards were pushing Jayfeather's block along in a group, clubbing anyone who got too close to the edge of the group. As they were pushed along, another group joined them. Jayfeather realized this group was all she-cats, then noticed one she-cat in particular.

"Hazeltail!"

Hazeltail looked over her shoulder to see Jayfeather push his way through the crowd toward her. Meeting in the middle, the moved alongside each other as the guards pushed them along. Eventually, a large building came into view. There was a tall chimney on it, spewing black smoke into the sky. As they were herded down a set of stairs, Jayfeather noticed a sigh above the door.

Disinfection.

Going through a set of doors, the prisoners came into a room with benches and hooks along the wall. Sitting down next to Hazeltail, Jayfeather grasped her paw tightly in his own. There were several signs above his head.

Make sure you tie your shoes together.

Please remember your hook number.

"Undress! Clothes off! Schnell!"

Jayfeather quickly undressed, wondering what was going on. Hanging his clothes on hook fourteen, he turned to see Hazeltail had removed her clothes and was shivering. Whether it was from cold or fear, he didn't know. He pressed against her side and gave her ears a comforting lick.

"Don't worry, Hazeltail. We're fine."

The prisoners were herded down a small hallway, through a door, and into a room. Jayfeather noticed showerheads on the ceiling.

"We're just here for a shower, nothing else." He said to himself. Why did he feel like he didn't believe what he was saying? Squeezing through all the prisoners in the tiny room, he found Hazeltail. The she-cat was crying silently.

"J-Jayfeather . . . I'm afraid."

The tom looked at the she-cat. Wrapping his paws around her in a warm embrace, they stayed that way as the door was shut and the room went dark.

**A.N.: May we all learn from the tragedy that occurred so it may never happen again.**


End file.
